Buildings and architecture of Bath
Encyclopedia
The buildings and architecture of Bath, a city in Somerset
in the south west
of England, reveal significant examples of the architecture of England, from the Roman Baths (including their significant Celt
ic presence), to the present day. The city became a World Heritage Site
in 1987, largely because of its architectural history and the way in which the city landscape draws together public and private buildings and spaces. The many examples of Palladian architecture
are purposefully integrated with the urban spaces to provide "picturesque aestheticism". It is the only entire city in Britain to achieve World Heritage status, and is a popular tourist destination.
Important buildings include the Roman Baths; neoclassical
architect Robert Adam
's Pulteney Bridge
, based on an unused design for the Rialto Bridge
in Venice; and Bath Abbey
in the city centre, founded in 1499 on the site of an 8th century church. Of equal importance are the residential buildings designed and built into boulevards and crescents by the Georgian
architects John Wood, the Elder
and his son John Wood, the Younger
– well-known examples being the Royal Crescent
, built around 1770, and The Circus
, built around 1760, where each of the three curved segments faces one of the entrances, ensuring that there is always a classical facade facing the entering visitor.
Most of Bath's buildings are made from the local, golden-coloured, Bath Stone
. The dominant architectural style is Georgian, which evolved from the Palladian revival style that became popular in the early 18th century. The city became a fashionable and popular spa and social centre during the 18th century. Based initially around its hot springs, this led to a demand for substantial homes and guest houses. The key architects, John Wood and his son, laid out many of the city's present-day squares and crescents within a green valley and the surrounding hills. According to UNESCO
this provided... "an integration of architecture, urban design, and landscape setting, and the deliberate creation of a beautiful city". Development during modern eras, including the development of the transport infrastructure and rebuilding after bomb damage during World War II, has mostly been in keeping with earlier styles to maintain the integrated cityscape.
Buildings from Bath's pre-Norman period either no longer exist, or their remains are below street level. Archaeological sites in the central area of the city have supplied some details about how they may have looked, while the lower areas of the Roman Baths reveal significant remains from the Roman period.
The Baths were built around hot springs
, the only ones naturally occurring in the United Kingdom. Archaeological evidence suggests that the main spring in its natural state was treated as a shrine by the Celts. During the early Roman occupation of Britain
, in the 60s or 70s AD, engineers drove oak piles into the mud to provide a stable foundation and surrounded the spring with an irregular stone chamber lined with lead. These still survive. At this early stage the spring was an open pool in the corner of the temple precinct. It fed a bathing complex on its south side within a barrel-vaulted
building. The complex was gradually built up over the next 300 years. All the stonework above the level of the baths is from more recent periods including the 12th century, when John of Tours
built a curative bath over the King's Spring reservoir, and the 16th century, when the city corporation built a new bath (Queen's Bath) to the south of the spring. The spring is now housed in 18th-century buildings designed by architects John Wood, the Elder
and John Wood, the Younger
; visitor access is via an 1897 concert hall by J M Brydon, which is an eastward continuation of the Grand Pump Room
with a glass-domed centre and single-storey radiused corner.
Beside the baths, a temple, in classical style
with four large, fluted
Corinthian
columns and dedicated to Minerva
was constructed. It stood on a podium above a surrounding courtyard. The columns supported a frieze and decorated pediment parts of which can be seen in the museum within the baths. In the 2nd century it was expanded by the addition of side chapels and an ambulatory, which may have encouraged some historians to argue that there were two temples. The temple remained in use for worship until around the 4th century, but the site is now occupied by the Grand Pump Room.
The city was given defensive walls
, probably in the 3rd century, but they disappeared during subsequent redevelopments. The line of then formed the basis of the medieval walls enclosing 23 acres (9.3 ha), some which survived until the 18th century. The Anglo-Saxons
called the town Baðum, Baðan or Baðon, meaning "at the baths," the source of the present name. In 675, Osric, King of the Hwicce
, set up a monastic house at Bath, probably using the walled area as its precinct. The Anglo-Saxon poem known as The Ruin
may describe the appearance of the Roman site about this time. King Offa
of Mercia
gained control of this monastery in 781 and rebuilt the church, which was dedicated to St. Peter. By the 9th century the old Roman street pattern had been lost, and Bath had become a royal possession; King Alfred
laid out the town afresh, leaving its south-eastern quadrant as the abbey precinct.
Bath Abbey
was founded in 1499 on the site of an 8th century church. The original Anglo-Saxon church was pulled down after 1066, and a grand cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter
and Saint Paul was begun on the site by John of Tours
, Bishop of Bath and Wells
, around 1090; however, only the ambulatory
was complete when he died in December 1122. The half-finished cathedral was devastated by fire in 1137, but work continued until about 1156; the completed building was approximately 330 feet (101 m) long. By the 15th century, Bath's abbey church was badly dilapidated and in need of repairs. Oliver King
, Bishop of Bath and Wells, decided in 1500 to rebuild it on a smaller scale. It is in a late Perpendicular style with flying buttress
es and crocket
ed pinnacle
s decorating a crenellated and pierced parapet
. The new church was completed just a few years before Bath Priory was dissolved
in 1539 by Henry VIII
. Major restoration work
was carried out by Sir George Gilbert Scott
in the 1860s, funded by the rector, Charles Kemble. The choir and transepts have a fan vault
by Robert
and William Vertue
, in the 1860s, completing the original roof from 1608. The nave was given a matching vault in the 19th century. The building is lit by 52 windows.
The medieval era is represented by the remains of the city walls in Upper Borough Walls
. There are no other surviving buildings from this period. Several areas of the city underwent development during the Stuart
period, in response to the increasing number of visitors to the spa and resort town who required accommodation. The St Thomas à Becket Church was built between 1490 and 1498 by John Cantlow, Prior of Bath Abbey and took the place of an older Norman church. It is believed that there was originally a Saxon chapel on the site. The church was commonly called Old Widcombe Church and used to be the principal church of the parishes of Widcombe
and Lyncombe. The Domesday survey of 1086 shows a small settlement around the church although no trace of it remains. In 1847 a much larger church, St Matthews
, was built in Widcombe parish. On 22 April 1847, it was announced that the church bells, which had for centuries been in the tower of St. Thomas à Becket, were to be removed and installed in the new St. Matthew's. Widcombe Manor
was originally built in 1656 and then rebuilt in 1727 for Philip Bennet the local MP. Thomas Guidott
, moved to Bath and set up practice in 1668. He became interested in the curative properties of the waters and he wrote A discourse of Bathe, and the hot waters there. Also, Some Enquiries into the Nature of the water in 1676. This brought the health-giving properties of the hot mineral waters to the attention of the country and soon the aristocracy started to arrive to partake in them.
The early 18th century the central area around the Abbey was expanded including the Abbey Church Yard which contained Marshal Wade's House
, and Trim Street
, which was named after George Trim who owned the land. Number 5, which is also known as General Wolfe's house, is a 2-storey building with a parapet
and rusticated
quoins
, built by Thomas Greenway. The doorway has Ionic
pilaster
s and a tympanum
decorated with the implements of war. In 1716 the architect William Killigrew was commissioned to rebuild St John's Hospital
which was founded around 1180, by Bishop Reginald Fitz Jocelin
and is among the oldest almshouse
s in England.
The 2 storey Bath stone
building has a heavy ground floor arcade
of round-headed arches on pillars, and retains its original window mouldings and sashes
. Building work continued after 1727 under the 23-year-old John Wood, the Elder
, his first commission in Bath.
The dominant style of architecture in central Bath is Georgian
; this evolved from the Palladian
revival style which became popular in the early 18th century.
The original purpose of much of Bath's architecture is concealed by the honey-coloured classical façades; in an era before the advent of the luxury hotel, these apparently elegant residences were frequently purpose-built lodging houses, where visitors could hire a room, a floor, or (according to their means) an entire house for the duration of their visit, and be waited on by the house's communal servants.
The architects John Wood, the Elder
and his son John Wood, the Younger
laid out the new quarters in streets and squares, the identical façades of which gave an impression of palatial scale and classical decorum. Much of the creamy gold Bath stone
which was used for construction throughout the city, was obtained from the limestone
Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines
, which were owned by Ralph Allen
(1694–1764). Allen, in order to advertise the quality of his quarried limestone, commissioned the elder John Wood to build him a country house on his Prior Park
estate between the city and the mines, replacing his Town House
. Queen Square
was the first speculative development by John Wood, the Elder who lived in one of the houses. Queen Square was described by Nikolaus Pevsner
as "one of the finest Palladian compositions in England before 1730". The west side (numbers 14–18 and 18A, 19 and 20) was designed by John Pinch the younger
in 1830 and differs from Wood's original design as the central block is in Neo-Grecian style. The Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution (BRLSI) now occupies 16–18. The south side (numbers 5–13) was originally left open, but is now occupied by a hotel. The obelisk in the centre of the square was erected by Beau Nash
in 1738.
The Circus
is seen as the pinnacle of Wood's work. It consists of three long, curved terraces designed by the elder John Wood
to form a circular space or theatre intended for civic functions and games. The games give a clue to the design, the inspiration behind which was the Colosseum
in Rome. Like the Colosseum, the three façades have a different order of architecture on each floor: Doric
on the ground level, then Ionic
on the piano nobile
and finishing with Corinthian
on the upper floor, the style of the building thus becoming progressively more ornate as it rises. Gay Street
links Queen Square to The Circus. It was designed by John Wood, the Elder in 1735 and completed by his son John Wood, the Younger. The houses are of 3 storeys with Mansard roof
s, with many also having Ionic
columns. Hester Thrale
, who was also known as Mrs Piozzi, lived at number 8, with its 4 Corinthian
pilasters on the ground and 1st floors in 1781. Number 41 is on the corner between Gay Street and Queen Square. It was the home of John Wood, the Younger.
One of the main shopping streets is now Milsom Street
, which was built in 1762 by Thomas Lightholder. The buildings were originally grand town houses with mansard roof
s and Corintian
columns. The bank at number 24 was built by Wilson
and Willcox and includes baroque detail not seen on the other buildings. Numbers 37 to 42 which are known as Somersetshire Buildings have been designated as Grade I listed buildings. The Octagon Chapel
was a place of worship when it was built in 1767, then a furniture shop by Mallett Antiques
, and is now a restaurant. Milsom street leads up hill, from the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases
, which was founded in 1738 as The Mineral Water Hospital, to The Paragon
which overlooks the Walcot
area. The Paragon was designed by Thomas Warr Attwood
. Each building has matching doors and widows with central pediment
s and flat entablature
s either side of the 1st floor windows and Tuscan
pilaster
s and pediment
s to the doorways. Numbers 22 to 37 continue the theme from numbers 1 to 21 and were completed in 1775 by Joseph Axford, a local mason. Numbers 28 to 32 were damaged by bombing during World War II but have since been restored. St Swithin's Church was built between 1779 and 1790 by John Palmer
. The church house which forms number 38 The Paragon was built in the early 18th century. The adjoining cemetery has gates with a rusticated
base and panels with inverted torches between pilasters. There is an entablature
with metopes
and triglyph
s.
Around 1770 the neoclassical
architect Robert Adam
designed Pulteney Bridge
, a three-arched bridge spanning the Avon. He used as his prototype an original, but unused, design by Andrea Palladio
for the Rialto Bridge
in Venice. Thus, Pulteney Bridge became not just a means of crossing the river, but also a shopping arcade. Along with the Rialto Bridge, is one of the very few surviving bridges in Europe to serve this dual purpose. It has been substantially altered since it was built. The bridge was named after Frances and William Pulteney, the owners of the Bathwick
estate for which the bridge provided a link to the rest of Bath. The best known of Bath's terraces is the Royal Crescent
, built between 1767 and 1774 and designed by the younger John Wood
. But all is not what it seems; while Wood designed the great curved façade of what appears to be about 30 houses with Ionic column
s on a rusticated ground floor, that was the extent of his input. Each purchaser bought a certain length of the façade, and then employed their own architect to build a house to their own specifications behind it; hence what appears to be two houses is sometimes one. This system of town planning is betrayed at the rear of the crescent: while the front is completely uniform and symmetrical, the rear is a mixture of differing roof heights, juxtapositions and fenestration. This "Queen Anne fronts and Mary-Anne backs" architecture occurs repeatedly in Bath. In front of the Royal Crescent is a Ha-ha, a trench on which the inner side of which is vertical and faced with stone, with the outer face sloped and turfed
, making the trench, in effect, a sunken fence
or retaining wall
. The ha-ha is designed not to interrupt the view from Royal Victoria Park, and to be invisible until seen from close by.
The other crescents which give Bath its architectural identity include: Camden Crescent
which was built by John Eveleigh
in 1788, and damaged by a landslide in 1889, Lansdown Crescent, designed by John Palmer
and constructed by a variety of builders between 1789 and 1793, and Somerset Place
for which the facades were designed by the architect John Eveleigh who went bankrupt during the building, which started in 1790 but was not completed until the 1820s. Some of Somerset Crescent was destroyed during the Second World War and rebuilt as student accommodation in the 1950s and 1960s. It used to form part of the campus of Bath Spa University
, but has since been sold.
The area of North Parade
, South Parade
, Pierrepont and Duke Streets
was part of a wider scheme to build a Royal Forum, similar to Queen Square, which was never completed. Wood designed the facade, of Bath stone
, after which a variety of builders completed the work with different interiors and rear elevations. Many of the buildings are now hotels and shops whilst some remain as private residences. North Parade Bridge was built almost 100 years later in 1836 by William Tierney Clark
. His original bridge was made of cast iron
on stone abutments, with lodges and staircases. This was rebuilt in 1936 completely in stone. Many of the buildings in South Parade are now hotels and restaurants whilst some remain as private residences. The area which Wood envisaged as an area of sunken gardens matching the houses is now a car park. On the southern side of the road is the Roman Catholic St John's Church
, which was designed and built between 1861 and 1863 by Charles Francis Hansom
who added the 222 feet (67.7 m) spire in 1867.
The heart of the Georgian city were Wood's Assembly Rooms
, and the Pump Room
, which, together with its associated Lower Assembly Rooms, was designed by Thomas Baldwin
, a local builder responsible for many other buildings in the city, including the terraces in Argyle Street, the Guildhall
, The Cross Bath
, Widcombe Crescent
and Royal Baths Treatment Centre in Bath Street
. The Grand Pump Room itself includes a North Colonnade of 9 bays, with unfluted Ionic
columns. The South Colonnade is similar but had an upper floor added in the late 19th century. The colonnades and side wall of the Pump Room have a facade on Stall Street
. Baldwin rose rapidly, becoming a leader in Bath's architectural history. Great Pulteney Street
, where Baldwin eventually lived, is another of his works: this wide boulevard
, constructed and over 1000 feet (305 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide, leading from Laura Place
is lined on both sides by Georgian terraces.
At the end of Great Pulteney Street is the Holburne Museum of Art
, which was originally designed as the Sydney Hotel and was built by Charles Harcourt Masters
in 1795–6. It on Sydney Place
and within the Sydney Pleasure Gardens which stretch from the road to the Kennet and Avon Canal
. Next to the church of St Mary the Virgin is Bathwick Hill
which leads up to Claverton Down
, including Claverton Manor which was built in the 1820s and is now home to the American Museum in Britain and the University of Bath
.
The early 18th century saw Bath acquire its first purpose-built theatre, the Theatre Royal
, along with the Grand Pump Room
attached to the Roman Baths and assembly rooms
. Master of Ceremonies
Beau Nash
, who presided over the city's social life from 1705 until his death in 1761, drew up a code of behaviour for public entertainments. The population of the city had reached 40,020 by the time of the 1801 census, making it one of the largest cities in Britain, which was expanding up the surrounding hills. William Thomas Beckford
bought a house in Lansdown Crescent in 1822, eventually buying a further two houses in the crescent to form his residence. Having acquired all the land between his home and the top of Lansdown Hill, north of the city centre, he created a garden over half a mile in length and built Beckford's Tower
at the top. To the west Partis College
was built in the Newbridge
area as a large block of almshouse
s between 1825 and 1827. It was founded by Ann and Fletcher Partis for women "who had been left in reduced circumstances", and still provides accommodation, in 30 terraced houses set around three sides of a quadrangle, for women, aged over 50 in membership of the Church of England
.
In 1862, George Gilbert Scott
redesigned the original chapel, which had been built by Goodrich.
In the early 19th century the romantic medieval gothic style appeared as a backlash to the symmetry
of Palladianism. By the middle of the 19th century, as a result of new technology, construction was able to develop incorporating steel as a building component.
In 1810 the Kennet and Avon Canal
opened linking the River Avon at Bath to Reading
. Bath Locks
mark the divergence of the River Avon and the canal, 656 yards (600 m) south of Pulteney Bridge
. Alongside the bottom lock are a side pound
and a pumping station that pumps water up the locks to replace that used each time the lock is opened. The next stage of Bath Deep Lock is numbered 8/9 as two locks were combined when the canal was restored in 1976. The new chamber has a depth of 19 in 5 in (5.92 m), making it Britain's deepest canal lock. Just above the 'deep lock' is an area of water enabling the lock to refill and above this is Wash House Lock, followed by Abbey View Lock, by which there is another pumping station and, in quick succession, Pultney Lock and Bath Top Lock. Above the top lock the canal passes through Sydney Gardens including two short tunnels and under two cast iron
footbridges dating from 1800. Cleveland tunnel is 173 feet (52.7 m) long and runs under Cleveland House, the former headquarters of the Kennet and Avon Canal Company. A trap-door in the tunnel roof was used to pass paperwork between clerks above and bargees below. Many of the bridges over the canal are also listed buildings. Victoria Bridge
which was built in 1836 across the River Avon, was an important early example of a cable-stayed bridge
.
As the size of the city and numbers of visitors grew new facilities opened. Cleveland Pools
in Hampton Row, is a semi-circular lido
built, by John Pinch the elder, around 1814. It is believed to be the oldest surviving public outdoor swimming pools in England. The Corridor
is one of the world's earliest retail arcades
, designed by architect Henry Goodridge
and built in 1825, with a glass roof. The High Street end has a Doric
colonnade
. Each end has marble
columns. A musicians gallery, with a wrought iron balustrade and gilt lions heads and garlands, is in the centre of the arcade. Cleveland Bridge
was built in 1826 by William Hazledine
with Henry Goodridge
as the architect. St Michael's Church
was rebuilt between 1835 and 1837 and St. Stephen's Church
built in Walcot
. by James Wilson
, between 1840 and 1845. The Bear Flat
area south of the city centre was started by the Georgians
but the main estate of Poets Corner is late Victorian
and Edwardian.
The opening of the Great Western Railway
in 1841 removed much of the canal's traffic, and in 1852 the railway company took over its running. Bath Spa railway station
is the principal railway station in Bath. It was built in 1840 by Brunel
. It is in an asymmetrical Tudor style with curving gables, and lies on the north bank of the Avon
, with the line swerving elegantly across from the southern bank to the station and then back again. Green Park railway station
opened in 1870 as the terminus of Midland Railway's
Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line
. For some of its life, it was known as Bath Queen Square. It includes a vaulted glass roof in a single-span wrought iron arch structure. Parts of the distinctive glass roof were damaged during bombing raids in April 1942, and the glazing was not re-instated during railway usage after the war. Following the Beeching Report
, passenger trains ceased from 1966 and the last goods train ran in 1971. In the 1980s the rail approaches to the station were redeveloped as a major supermarket opened in December 1982, and the station itself is used as a pedestrian passageway to and from the city; there are a number of small shop units in the former station buildings. The Victoria Art Gallery
, a free public art museum and library was built between the Guildhall and Pulteney Bridge. It was designed by John McKean Brydon. The exterior of the building includes a statue of Queen Victoria
, by A. C. Lucchesi, and friezes of classical figures by G. A. Lawson
.
was built in 1901 on Orange Grove close to both Bath Abbey
and Pulteney Bridge
.
In the 1920s and 1930s Bath's architectural traditions combined with an art deco
style in buildings such as The Forum
which opened as a 2,000-seat cinema in 1934, and has since been converted into a church and concert venue. The Royal United Hospital
opened in the Weston suburb, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the city centre in 1932. During World War II, between the evening of 25 April and the early morning of 27 April 1942, Bath suffered three air raids in reprisal for RAF
raids on the German cities of Lübeck
and Rostock
, part of the Luftwaffe
campaign popularly known as the Baedeker Blitz
. Over 400 people were killed, and more than 19,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed. Houses in the Royal Crescent
, Circus
and Paragon
were burnt out along with the Assembly Rooms, while part of the south side of Queen Square
was destroyed. A postwar review of inadequate housing led to the clearance and redevelopment of large areas of the city in a postwar style, often at variance with the Georgian style of the city. In the 1950s the nearby villages of Combe Down
, Twerton
and Weston were incorporated into Bath to enable the development of further housing, much of it council housing such as the Whiteway
estate. In the 1970s and 1980s it was recognised that conservation of historic buildings was inadequate, leading to more care and reuse of buildings and open spaces. In 1987 the city was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognising its international cultural significance.
In the 1960s and early 1970s the way in which some parts of Bath were redeveloped, resulting in the loss of some 18th- and 19th-century buildings, led to a popular campaign to change the way the city was developing, which drew strength from the publication of Adam Fergusson's The Sack of Bath. Since 2000, developments have included the Bath Spa
, SouthGate
, and the Bath Western Riverside project.
. The was part of the Southgate
redevelopment begun in 2007 in which the central 1960s shopping precinct, bus station, and multi-story carpark were demolished and a new area of mock-Georgian shopping streets is being constructed. As a result of the changes the city's status as a World Heritage Site
was reviewed by UNESCO in 2009. The decision was made to let Bath keep its status, but UNESCO has asked to be consulted on future phases of the Riverside development, saying that the density and volume of buildings in the second and third phases of the development need to be reconsidered. It also says that Bath must do more to attract world-class architecture to any new developments.
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
in the south west
South West England
South West England is one of the regions of England defined by the Government of the United Kingdom for statistical and other purposes. It is the largest such region in area, covering and comprising Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. ...
of England, reveal significant examples of the architecture of England, from the Roman Baths (including their significant Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic presence), to the present day. The city became a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
in 1987, largely because of its architectural history and the way in which the city landscape draws together public and private buildings and spaces. The many examples of Palladian architecture
Palladian architecture
Palladian architecture is a European style of architecture derived from the designs of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio . The term "Palladian" normally refers to buildings in a style inspired by Palladio's own work; that which is recognised as Palladian architecture today is an evolution of...
are purposefully integrated with the urban spaces to provide "picturesque aestheticism". It is the only entire city in Britain to achieve World Heritage status, and is a popular tourist destination.
Important buildings include the Roman Baths; neoclassical
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
architect Robert Adam
Robert Adam
Robert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
's Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge that crosses the River Avon, in Bath, England. It was completed in 1773 and is designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building....
, based on an unused design for the Rialto Bridge
Rialto Bridge
The Rialto Bridge is one of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. It is the oldest bridge across the canal, and was the dividing line for the districts of San Marco and San Polo.- History :...
in Venice; and Bath Abbey
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
in the city centre, founded in 1499 on the site of an 8th century church. Of equal importance are the residential buildings designed and built into boulevards and crescents by the Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
architects John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder, , was an English architect. Born in Twerton England, a village near Bath, now a suburb, he went to school in Bath. He came back to Bath after working in Yorkshire, and it is believed, in London, in his early 20s...
and his son John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger was an English architect, working principally in the city of Bath, Somerset. He began his work as an assistant for his father, the architect John Wood, the Elder...
– well-known examples being the Royal Crescent
Royal Crescent
The Royal Crescent is a residential road of 30 houses laid out in a crescent in the city of Bath, England. Designed by the architect John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774, it is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the United Kingdom and is a grade I...
, built around 1770, and The Circus
The Circus (Bath)
The Circus is an example of Georgian architecture in the city of Bath, Somerset, England, begun in 1754 and completed in 1768. The name comes from the Latin 'circus', which means a ring, oval or circle. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
, built around 1760, where each of the three curved segments faces one of the entrances, ensuring that there is always a classical facade facing the entering visitor.
Most of Bath's buildings are made from the local, golden-coloured, Bath Stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
. The dominant architectural style is Georgian, which evolved from the Palladian revival style that became popular in the early 18th century. The city became a fashionable and popular spa and social centre during the 18th century. Based initially around its hot springs, this led to a demand for substantial homes and guest houses. The key architects, John Wood and his son, laid out many of the city's present-day squares and crescents within a green valley and the surrounding hills. According to UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
this provided... "an integration of architecture, urban design, and landscape setting, and the deliberate creation of a beautiful city". Development during modern eras, including the development of the transport infrastructure and rebuilding after bomb damage during World War II, has mostly been in keeping with earlier styles to maintain the integrated cityscape.
Celtic, Roman and Saxon
The Baths were built around hot springs
UK Geothermal Springs
This is a list of geothermal springs in the United Kingdom, otherwise known as hot springs* Tunbridge Wells, Kent thermal spring* Stoney Middleton Thermal Springs, Derbyshire 17.2 degrees C, 63 degrees F...
, the only ones naturally occurring in the United Kingdom. Archaeological evidence suggests that the main spring in its natural state was treated as a shrine by the Celts. During the early Roman occupation of Britain
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
, in the 60s or 70s AD, engineers drove oak piles into the mud to provide a stable foundation and surrounded the spring with an irregular stone chamber lined with lead. These still survive. At this early stage the spring was an open pool in the corner of the temple precinct. It fed a bathing complex on its south side within a barrel-vaulted
Barrel vault
A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault or a wagon vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve along a given distance. The curves are typically circular in shape, lending a semi-cylindrical appearance to the total design...
building. The complex was gradually built up over the next 300 years. All the stonework above the level of the baths is from more recent periods including the 12th century, when John of Tours
John of Tours
John of Tours was a medieval Bishop of Wells in England who moved the diocese seat to Bath. He was a native of Tours and was King William I of England's doctor before becoming a bishop...
built a curative bath over the King's Spring reservoir, and the 16th century, when the city corporation built a new bath (Queen's Bath) to the south of the spring. The spring is now housed in 18th-century buildings designed by architects John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder, , was an English architect. Born in Twerton England, a village near Bath, now a suburb, he went to school in Bath. He came back to Bath after working in Yorkshire, and it is believed, in London, in his early 20s...
and John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger was an English architect, working principally in the city of Bath, Somerset. He began his work as an assistant for his father, the architect John Wood, the Elder...
; visitor access is via an 1897 concert hall by J M Brydon, which is an eastward continuation of the Grand Pump Room
Grand Pump Room, Bath
The Grand Pump Room in the Abbey Church Yard, Bath, Somerset, England is a historic building. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
with a glass-domed centre and single-storey radiused corner.
Beside the baths, a temple, in classical style
Classical order
A classical order is one of the ancient styles of classical architecture, each distinguished by its proportions and characteristic profiles and details, and most readily recognizable by the type of column employed. Three ancient orders of architecture—the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian—originated in...
with four large, fluted
Fluting (architecture)
Fluting in architecture refers to the shallow grooves running vertically along a surface.It typically refers to the grooves running on a column shaft or a pilaster, but need not necessarily be restricted to those two applications...
Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
columns and dedicated to Minerva
Minerva
Minerva was the Roman goddess whom Romans from the 2nd century BC onwards equated with the Greek goddess Athena. She was the virgin goddess of poetry, medicine, wisdom, commerce, weaving, crafts, magic...
was constructed. It stood on a podium above a surrounding courtyard. The columns supported a frieze and decorated pediment parts of which can be seen in the museum within the baths. In the 2nd century it was expanded by the addition of side chapels and an ambulatory, which may have encouraged some historians to argue that there were two temples. The temple remained in use for worship until around the 4th century, but the site is now occupied by the Grand Pump Room.
The city was given defensive walls
Bath city walls
Bath's city walls are a sequence of defensive structures built around the city of Bath in England.-History:Bath's first walls were built by the Romans. The Anglo-Saxons constructed a fortified burh at Bath, utilising the existing city walls, maintaining the city as a centre of regional power...
, probably in the 3rd century, but they disappeared during subsequent redevelopments. The line of then formed the basis of the medieval walls enclosing 23 acres (9.3 ha), some which survived until the 18th century. The Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
called the town Baðum, Baðan or Baðon, meaning "at the baths," the source of the present name. In 675, Osric, King of the Hwicce
Hwicce
The Hwicce were one of the peoples of Anglo-Saxon England. The exact boundaries of their kingdom are uncertain, though it is likely that they coincided with those of the old Diocese of Worcester, founded in 679–80, the early bishops of which bore the title Episcopus Hwicciorum...
, set up a monastic house at Bath, probably using the walled area as its precinct. The Anglo-Saxon poem known as The Ruin
The Ruin
"The Ruin" is an 8th-century Old English poem from the Exeter Book by an unknown author. The Exeter Book is a large book of mostly Christian verse, which contains about one-third of the extant Old English poems...
may describe the appearance of the Roman site about this time. King Offa
Offa of Mercia
Offa was the King of Mercia from 757 until his death in July 796. The son of Thingfrith and a descendant of Eowa, Offa came to the throne after a period of civil war following the assassination of Æthelbald after defeating the other claimant Beornred. In the early years of Offa's reign it is likely...
of Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
gained control of this monastery in 781 and rebuilt the church, which was dedicated to St. Peter. By the 9th century the old Roman street pattern had been lost, and Bath had become a royal possession; King Alfred
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
laid out the town afresh, leaving its south-eastern quadrant as the abbey precinct.
Norman, Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
was founded in 1499 on the site of an 8th century church. The original Anglo-Saxon church was pulled down after 1066, and a grand cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
and Saint Paul was begun on the site by John of Tours
John of Tours
John of Tours was a medieval Bishop of Wells in England who moved the diocese seat to Bath. He was a native of Tours and was King William I of England's doctor before becoming a bishop...
, Bishop of Bath and Wells
Bishop of Bath and Wells
The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England.The present diocese covers the vast majority of the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in...
, around 1090; however, only the ambulatory
Ambulatory
The ambulatory is the covered passage around a cloister. The term is sometimes applied to the procession way around the east end of a cathedral or large church and behind the high altar....
was complete when he died in December 1122. The half-finished cathedral was devastated by fire in 1137, but work continued until about 1156; the completed building was approximately 330 feet (101 m) long. By the 15th century, Bath's abbey church was badly dilapidated and in need of repairs. Oliver King
Oliver King
Oliver King was a Bishop of Exeter and Bishop of Bath and Wells who restored Bath Abbey after 1500.-Life:Educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge, King became a priest and was appointed Bishop of Exeter on 1 October 1492, consecrated on 3 February 1493. He was then translated to the see of...
, Bishop of Bath and Wells, decided in 1500 to rebuild it on a smaller scale. It is in a late Perpendicular style with flying buttress
Flying buttress
A flying buttress is a specific form of buttressing most strongly associated with Gothic church architecture. The purpose of any buttress is to resist the lateral forces pushing a wall outwards by redirecting them to the ground...
es and crocket
Crocket
A crocket is a hook-shaped decorative element common in Gothic architecture. It is in the form of a stylised carving of curled leaves, buds or flowers which is used at regular intervals to decorate the sloping edges of spires, finials, pinnacles, and wimpergs....
ed pinnacle
Pinnacle
A pinnacle is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire...
s decorating a crenellated and pierced parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
. The new church was completed just a few years before Bath Priory was dissolved
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in 1539 by Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
. Major restoration work
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
was carried out by Sir George Gilbert Scott
George Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...
in the 1860s, funded by the rector, Charles Kemble. The choir and transepts have a fan vault
Fan vault
thumb|right|250px|Fan vaulting over the nave at Bath Abbey, Bath, England. Made from local Bath stone, this is a [[Victorian restoration]] of the original roof of 1608....
by Robert
Robert Vertue
Robert Vertue was an English architect and master mason.He worked as a mason on the nave of Westminster Abbey between 1475 and 1490, and then as the master mason for Henry VII's riverside north range of Greenwich Palace, built in 1500–04 and a work at the Tower of London.Along with his brother...
and William Vertue
William Vertue
William Vertue was an English architect specialising in Fan vault ceilings.Along with his brother Robert he was involved in the construction of the Tower of London , Bath Abbey, the Vertue brothers are reported as telling Bishop Oliver King the patron of the work that the vaulting "Ther shal be...
, in the 1860s, completing the original roof from 1608. The nave was given a matching vault in the 19th century. The building is lit by 52 windows.
The medieval era is represented by the remains of the city walls in Upper Borough Walls
Upper Borough Walls, Bath
Upper Borough Walls is a historic street in Bath, Somerset, England. Many of the structures are listed buildings.It takes its name from the section of the medieval wall of the city which still remains....
. There are no other surviving buildings from this period. Several areas of the city underwent development during the Stuart
House of Stuart
The House of Stuart is a European royal house. Founded by Robert II of Scotland, the Stewarts first became monarchs of the Kingdom of Scotland during the late 14th century, and subsequently held the position of the Kings of Great Britain and Ireland...
period, in response to the increasing number of visitors to the spa and resort town who required accommodation. The St Thomas à Becket Church was built between 1490 and 1498 by John Cantlow, Prior of Bath Abbey and took the place of an older Norman church. It is believed that there was originally a Saxon chapel on the site. The church was commonly called Old Widcombe Church and used to be the principal church of the parishes of Widcombe
Widcombe, Bath
Widcombe is a district of Bath, England, immediately south-east of the city centre, across the River Avon.Widcombe was part of the hundred of Bath Forum.Widcombe Manor House is a grade I listed manor house built in 1656...
and Lyncombe. The Domesday survey of 1086 shows a small settlement around the church although no trace of it remains. In 1847 a much larger church, St Matthews
St Matthew's Church, Widcombe
St Matthew's Church in Widcombe is located on Cambridge Place in Widcombe, the southeastern section of Bath, Somerset. Built 1846-1847 principally to designs by Bath City Architect George Phillips Manners, it is situated above the Widcombe Locks of the Kennet and Avon Canal and opposite the Church...
, was built in Widcombe parish. On 22 April 1847, it was announced that the church bells, which had for centuries been in the tower of St. Thomas à Becket, were to be removed and installed in the new St. Matthew's. Widcombe Manor
Widcombe Manor House
Widcombe Manor is a grade I listed Georgian house in Widcombe, Bath, England, originally built in 1656 and then rebuilt in 1727 for Philip Bennet the local MP. The crest of the Bennet family can be seen surmounting the two pedestals at the entrance gates...
was originally built in 1656 and then rebuilt in 1727 for Philip Bennet the local MP. Thomas Guidott
Thomas Guidott
Thomas Guidott , an English "doctor of physik" and writer, became one of the 17th century's most prolific physical scientists. He used the analytical techniques of his time to detail and document the properties of the hot mineral springs at Bath, Somerset.-Early studies:Guidott attended Dorchester...
, moved to Bath and set up practice in 1668. He became interested in the curative properties of the waters and he wrote A discourse of Bathe, and the hot waters there. Also, Some Enquiries into the Nature of the water in 1676. This brought the health-giving properties of the hot mineral waters to the attention of the country and soon the aristocracy started to arrive to partake in them.
Marshal Wade's House
Marshal Wade's House at 14 Abbey Church Yard, Bath, Somerset, England was built around 1700 and has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
, and Trim Street
Trim Street, Bath
Trim Street in Bath, Somerset, England is a historic street, built in 1707, of shops and houses, many of which are listed buildings. It was named after George Trim who owned the land....
, which was named after George Trim who owned the land. Number 5, which is also known as General Wolfe's house, is a 2-storey building with a parapet
Parapet
A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony or other structure. Where extending above a roof, it may simply be the portion of an exterior wall that continues above the line of the roof surface, or may be a continuation of a vertical feature beneath the roof such as a...
and rusticated
Rustication (architecture)
thumb|upright|Two different styles of rustication in the [[Palazzo Medici-Riccardi]] in [[Florence]].In classical architecture rustication is an architectural feature that contrasts in texture with the smoothly finished, squared block masonry surfaces called ashlar...
quoins
Quoin (architecture)
Quoins are the cornerstones of brick or stone walls. Quoins may be either structural or decorative. Architects and builders use quoins to give the impression of strength and firmness to the outline of a building...
, built by Thomas Greenway. The doorway has Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s and a tympanum
Tympanum (architecture)
In architecture, a tympanum is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, bounded by a lintel and arch. It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments. Most architectural styles include this element....
decorated with the implements of war. In 1716 the architect William Killigrew was commissioned to rebuild St John's Hospital
St John's Hospital, Bath
St John's Hospital in Bath, Somerset, England, was founded around 1180, by Bishop Reginald Fitz Jocelin and is among the oldest almshouses in England...
which was founded around 1180, by Bishop Reginald Fitz Jocelin
Reginald Fitz Jocelin
Reginald fitz Jocelin was a medieval Bishop of Bath and an Archbishop of Canterbury-elect in England. A member of an Anglo-Norman noble family, he was the son of a bishop, and was educated in Italy...
and is among the oldest almshouse
Almshouse
Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people to live in a particular community...
s in England.
The 2 storey Bath stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
building has a heavy ground floor arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
of round-headed arches on pillars, and retains its original window mouldings and sashes
Sash window
A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels or "sashes" that form a frame to hold panes of glass, which are often separated from other panes by narrow muntins...
. Building work continued after 1727 under the 23-year-old John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder, , was an English architect. Born in Twerton England, a village near Bath, now a suburb, he went to school in Bath. He came back to Bath after working in Yorkshire, and it is believed, in London, in his early 20s...
, his first commission in Bath.
Georgian
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
; this evolved from the Palladian
Palladian architecture
Palladian architecture is a European style of architecture derived from the designs of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio . The term "Palladian" normally refers to buildings in a style inspired by Palladio's own work; that which is recognised as Palladian architecture today is an evolution of...
revival style which became popular in the early 18th century.
The original purpose of much of Bath's architecture is concealed by the honey-coloured classical façades; in an era before the advent of the luxury hotel, these apparently elegant residences were frequently purpose-built lodging houses, where visitors could hire a room, a floor, or (according to their means) an entire house for the duration of their visit, and be waited on by the house's communal servants.
The architects John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder, , was an English architect. Born in Twerton England, a village near Bath, now a suburb, he went to school in Bath. He came back to Bath after working in Yorkshire, and it is believed, in London, in his early 20s...
and his son John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger was an English architect, working principally in the city of Bath, Somerset. He began his work as an assistant for his father, the architect John Wood, the Elder...
laid out the new quarters in streets and squares, the identical façades of which gave an impression of palatial scale and classical decorum. Much of the creamy gold Bath stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
which was used for construction throughout the city, was obtained from the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines
Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines
Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines is a 6.22 hectare Site of Special Scientific Interest in Bath and North East Somerset, notified in 1991 because of the Greater and Lesser Horseshoe bat population....
, which were owned by Ralph Allen
Ralph Allen
Ralph Allen was an entrepreneur and philanthropist, and was notable for his reforms to the British postal system. He was baptised at St Columb Major, Cornwall on 24 July 1693. As a teenager he worked at the Post Office. He moved in 1710 to Bath, where he became a post office clerk, and at the age...
(1694–1764). Allen, in order to advertise the quality of his quarried limestone, commissioned the elder John Wood to build him a country house on his Prior Park
Prior Park
Prior Park is a Palladian house, designed by John Wood, the Elder in the 1730s and 1740s for Ralph Allen, on a hill overlooking Bath, Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
estate between the city and the mines, replacing his Town House
Ralph Allen's Town House, Bath
Ralph Allen's Town House is a grade I listed townhouse in Bath, Somerset, England.Ralph Allen, commenced building it in or shortly afer 1727, although it is unlikely he ever lived there...
. Queen Square
Queen Square (Bath)
Queen Square is a square of Georgian houses in the city of Bath, England.Queen Square was the first speculative development by the architect John Wood, the Elder. Wood lived in a house on the square. Numbers 21-27 make up the north side...
was the first speculative development by John Wood, the Elder who lived in one of the houses. Queen Square was described by Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
as "one of the finest Palladian compositions in England before 1730". The west side (numbers 14–18 and 18A, 19 and 20) was designed by John Pinch the younger
John Pinch the younger
John Pinch the younger was an architect, working mainly in the city of Bath, England, and surveyor to the Pulteney and Darlington estate...
in 1830 and differs from Wood's original design as the central block is in Neo-Grecian style. The Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution (BRLSI) now occupies 16–18. The south side (numbers 5–13) was originally left open, but is now occupied by a hotel. The obelisk in the centre of the square was erected by Beau Nash
Beau Nash
Beau Nash , born Richard Nash, was a celebrated dandy and leader of fashion in 18th-century Britain. He is best remembered as the Master of Ceremonies at the spa town of Bath.- Biography :...
in 1738.
The Circus (Bath)
The Circus is an example of Georgian architecture in the city of Bath, Somerset, England, begun in 1754 and completed in 1768. The name comes from the Latin 'circus', which means a ring, oval or circle. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
is seen as the pinnacle of Wood's work. It consists of three long, curved terraces designed by the elder John Wood
John Wood, the Elder
John Wood, the Elder, , was an English architect. Born in Twerton England, a village near Bath, now a suburb, he went to school in Bath. He came back to Bath after working in Yorkshire, and it is believed, in London, in his early 20s...
to form a circular space or theatre intended for civic functions and games. The games give a clue to the design, the inspiration behind which was the Colosseum
Colosseum
The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire...
in Rome. Like the Colosseum, the three façades have a different order of architecture on each floor: Doric
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
on the ground level, then Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
on the piano nobile
Piano nobile
The piano nobile is the principal floor of a large house, usually built in one of the styles of classical renaissance architecture...
and finishing with Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
on the upper floor, the style of the building thus becoming progressively more ornate as it rises. Gay Street
Gay Street, Bath
Gay Street in Bath, Somerset, England, links Queen Square to The Circus. It was designed by John Wood, the Elder in 1735 and completed by his son John Wood, the Younger. Much of the road has been designated as Grade I listed buildings....
links Queen Square to The Circus. It was designed by John Wood, the Elder in 1735 and completed by his son John Wood, the Younger. The houses are of 3 storeys with Mansard roof
Mansard roof
A mansard or mansard roof is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its sides with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper that is punctured by dormer windows. The roof creates an additional floor of habitable space, such as a garret...
s, with many also having Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
columns. Hester Thrale
Hester Thrale
Hester Lynch Thrale was a British diarist, author, and patron of the arts. Her diaries and correspondence are an important source of information about Samuel Johnson and 18th-century life.-Biography:Thrale was born at Bodvel Hall, Caernarvonshire, Wales...
, who was also known as Mrs Piozzi, lived at number 8, with its 4 Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
pilasters on the ground and 1st floors in 1781. Number 41 is on the corner between Gay Street and Queen Square. It was the home of John Wood, the Younger.
One of the main shopping streets is now Milsom Street
Milsom Street, Bath
Milsom Street in Bath, Somerset, England was built in 1762 by Thomas Lightholder. The buildings were originally grand town houses, but most are now used as shops, offices and banks. They have 3 storeys with mansard roofs and Corinthian columns....
, which was built in 1762 by Thomas Lightholder. The buildings were originally grand town houses with mansard roof
Mansard roof
A mansard or mansard roof is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its sides with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper that is punctured by dormer windows. The roof creates an additional floor of habitable space, such as a garret...
s and Corintian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
columns. The bank at number 24 was built by Wilson
James Wilson (architect)
James Wilson was a prominent Victorian architect practising in Bath, Somerset and partner in the firm Wilson & Willcox.On 12 January 1843 he married Maria Buckley of Llanelli, and in 1846 they had a son, James Buckley Wilson, who followed his father to also became an architect.-List of Buildings:*St...
and Willcox and includes baroque detail not seen on the other buildings. Numbers 37 to 42 which are known as Somersetshire Buildings have been designated as Grade I listed buildings. The Octagon Chapel
Octagon Chapel, Bath
The Octagon Chapel in Milsom Street, Bath, Somerset, England was built in 1767 and has been designated as a Grade I listed building.- History :...
was a place of worship when it was built in 1767, then a furniture shop by Mallett Antiques
Mallett Antiques
Mallett Antiques is an antique dealers with galleries in London and New York and regularly exhibit at the International Fine Art & Antique fairs.Mallett & Son Antiques is one of England's oldest antique dealers of fine antique furniture and decorative arts...
, and is now a restaurant. Milsom street leads up hill, from the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases
Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases
The Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases NHS Foundation Trust is an NHS hospital trust of the National Health Service in England. It is a small, specialist Trust in the centre of Bath....
, which was founded in 1738 as The Mineral Water Hospital, to The Paragon
The Paragon, Bath
The Paragon in the Walcot area of Bath, Somerset, England is a street of Georgian houses which have been designated as listed buildings. It was designed by Thomas Warr Attwood. It now forms part of the A4.Numbers 1 to 21 are 3 storey houses with mansard roofs...
which overlooks the Walcot
Walcot, Bath
Walcot is a suburb of the city of Bath, England. It lies to the north-north-east of the city centre, and is an electoral ward of the city.The parish church, on The Paragon is dedicated to St Swithin and was built in 1779-90 by John Palmer....
area. The Paragon was designed by Thomas Warr Attwood
Thomas Warr Attwood
Thomas Warr Attwood was an English builder, architect and local politician in Bath.He was a member of a prominent local family and a member of the city Council from 1760. Although he held no formal appointment, he acted as city surveyor and architect...
. Each building has matching doors and widows with central pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
s and flat entablature
Entablature
An entablature refers to the superstructure of moldings and bands which lie horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and are commonly divided into the architrave , the frieze ,...
s either side of the 1st floor windows and Tuscan
Tuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s and pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
s to the doorways. Numbers 22 to 37 continue the theme from numbers 1 to 21 and were completed in 1775 by Joseph Axford, a local mason. Numbers 28 to 32 were damaged by bombing during World War II but have since been restored. St Swithin's Church was built between 1779 and 1790 by John Palmer
John Palmer (Bath architect)
John Palmer was an English architect who worked on some of the notable buildings in the city of Bath in England...
. The church house which forms number 38 The Paragon was built in the early 18th century. The adjoining cemetery has gates with a rusticated
Rustication (architecture)
thumb|upright|Two different styles of rustication in the [[Palazzo Medici-Riccardi]] in [[Florence]].In classical architecture rustication is an architectural feature that contrasts in texture with the smoothly finished, squared block masonry surfaces called ashlar...
base and panels with inverted torches between pilasters. There is an entablature
Entablature
An entablature refers to the superstructure of moldings and bands which lie horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and are commonly divided into the architrave , the frieze ,...
with metopes
Metope (architecture)
In classical architecture, a metope is a rectangular architectural element that fills the space between two triglyphs in a Doric frieze, which is a decorative band of alternating triglyphs and metopes above the architrave of a building of the Doric order...
and triglyph
Triglyph
Triglyph is an architectural term for the vertically channeled tablets of the Doric frieze, so called because of the angular channels in them, two perfect and one divided, the two chamfered angles or hemiglyphs being reckoned as one. The square recessed spaces between the triglyphs on a Doric...
s.
Around 1770 the neoclassical
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
architect Robert Adam
Robert Adam
Robert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
designed Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge that crosses the River Avon, in Bath, England. It was completed in 1773 and is designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building....
, a three-arched bridge spanning the Avon. He used as his prototype an original, but unused, design by Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio was an architect active in the Republic of Venice. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily by Vitruvius, is widely considered the most influential individual in the history of Western architecture...
for the Rialto Bridge
Rialto Bridge
The Rialto Bridge is one of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy. It is the oldest bridge across the canal, and was the dividing line for the districts of San Marco and San Polo.- History :...
in Venice. Thus, Pulteney Bridge became not just a means of crossing the river, but also a shopping arcade. Along with the Rialto Bridge, is one of the very few surviving bridges in Europe to serve this dual purpose. It has been substantially altered since it was built. The bridge was named after Frances and William Pulteney, the owners of the Bathwick
Bathwick
Bathwick is an electoral ward in the City of Bath, England, on the opposite bank of the River Avon to the historic city centre.Bathwick was part of the hundred of Bath Forum....
estate for which the bridge provided a link to the rest of Bath. The best known of Bath's terraces is the Royal Crescent
Royal Crescent
The Royal Crescent is a residential road of 30 houses laid out in a crescent in the city of Bath, England. Designed by the architect John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774, it is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the United Kingdom and is a grade I...
, built between 1767 and 1774 and designed by the younger John Wood
John Wood, the Younger
John Wood, the Younger was an English architect, working principally in the city of Bath, Somerset. He began his work as an assistant for his father, the architect John Wood, the Elder...
. But all is not what it seems; while Wood designed the great curved façade of what appears to be about 30 houses with Ionic column
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s on a rusticated ground floor, that was the extent of his input. Each purchaser bought a certain length of the façade, and then employed their own architect to build a house to their own specifications behind it; hence what appears to be two houses is sometimes one. This system of town planning is betrayed at the rear of the crescent: while the front is completely uniform and symmetrical, the rear is a mixture of differing roof heights, juxtapositions and fenestration. This "Queen Anne fronts and Mary-Anne backs" architecture occurs repeatedly in Bath. In front of the Royal Crescent is a Ha-ha, a trench on which the inner side of which is vertical and faced with stone, with the outer face sloped and turfed
Sod
Sod or turf is grass and the part of the soil beneath it held together by the roots, or a piece of thin material.The term sod may be used to mean turf grown and cut specifically for the establishment of lawns...
, making the trench, in effect, a sunken fence
Fence
A fence is a freestanding structure designed to restrict or prevent movement across a boundary. It is generally distinguished from a wall by the lightness of its construction: a wall is usually restricted to such barriers made from solid brick or concrete, blocking vision as well as passage .Fences...
or retaining wall
Retaining wall
Retaining walls are built in order to hold back earth which would otherwise move downwards. Their purpose is to stabilize slopes and provide useful areas at different elevations, e.g...
. The ha-ha is designed not to interrupt the view from Royal Victoria Park, and to be invisible until seen from close by.
The other crescents which give Bath its architectural identity include: Camden Crescent
Camden Crescent, Bath
Camden Crescent in Bath, Somerset, England was built by John Eveleigh in 1788. Numbers 6 to 21 have been designated as a Grade I listed building....
which was built by John Eveleigh
John Eveleigh
John Eveleigh was an English surveyor and architect in Bath.He began his practice in Bath in the 1780s, but went bankrupt after the failure of the Bath City Bank and moved to Plymouth.-List of works:* Camden Crescent, Bath...
in 1788, and damaged by a landslide in 1889, Lansdown Crescent, designed by John Palmer
John Palmer (Bath architect)
John Palmer was an English architect who worked on some of the notable buildings in the city of Bath in England...
and constructed by a variety of builders between 1789 and 1793, and Somerset Place
Somerset Place (Bath)
Somerset Place is a Georgian Grade I listed crescent in Bath, England. The facades were designed by the architect John Eveleigh who went bankrupt during the building, which started in 1790 but was not completed until the 1820s....
for which the facades were designed by the architect John Eveleigh who went bankrupt during the building, which started in 1790 but was not completed until the 1820s. Some of Somerset Crescent was destroyed during the Second World War and rebuilt as student accommodation in the 1950s and 1960s. It used to form part of the campus of Bath Spa University
Bath Spa University
Bath Spa University is a university based in, and around, Bath, England. The institution was previously known as Bath College of Higher Education, and later Bath Spa University College...
, but has since been sold.
The area of North Parade
North Parade, Bath
North Parade in Bath, Somerset, England is a historic terrace built around 1741 by John Wood, the Elder. Several of the houses have been designated as Grade I listed buildings....
, South Parade
South Parade, Bath
South Parade in Bath, Somerset, England is a historic terrace built around 1743 by John Wood, the Elder. All of the houses have been designated as Grade I listed buildings....
, Pierrepont and Duke Streets
Duke Street, Bath
Duke Street in Bath, Somerset, England was built in 1748 by John Wood, the Elder. Several of the buildings have been designated as Grade I listed buildings...
was part of a wider scheme to build a Royal Forum, similar to Queen Square, which was never completed. Wood designed the facade, of Bath stone
Bath Stone
Bath Stone is an Oolitic Limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England, its warm, honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of Bath, England its distinctive appearance...
, after which a variety of builders completed the work with different interiors and rear elevations. Many of the buildings are now hotels and shops whilst some remain as private residences. North Parade Bridge was built almost 100 years later in 1836 by William Tierney Clark
William Tierney Clark
William Tierney Clark FRS was an English civil engineer particularly associated with the design and construction of bridges...
. His original bridge was made of cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
on stone abutments, with lodges and staircases. This was rebuilt in 1936 completely in stone. Many of the buildings in South Parade are now hotels and restaurants whilst some remain as private residences. The area which Wood envisaged as an area of sunken gardens matching the houses is now a car park. On the southern side of the road is the Roman Catholic St John's Church
St John's Church, Bath
St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church is located on the South Parade in the southeast section of Bath City Centre, in the old Ham District where Georgian architect John Wood the Elder had originally planned his forum...
, which was designed and built between 1861 and 1863 by Charles Francis Hansom
Charles Francis Hansom
Charles Francis Hansom was a prominent Roman Catholic Victorian architect who primarily designed in the Gothic Revival style.-Career:...
who added the 222 feet (67.7 m) spire in 1867.
The heart of the Georgian city were Wood's Assembly Rooms
Bath Assembly Rooms
The Bath Assembly Rooms, designed by John Wood the Younger in 1769, are a set of elegant assembly rooms located in the heart of the World Heritage City of Bath in England which are now open to the public as a visitor attraction...
, and the Pump Room
Grand Pump Room, Bath
The Grand Pump Room in the Abbey Church Yard, Bath, Somerset, England is a historic building. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
, which, together with its associated Lower Assembly Rooms, was designed by Thomas Baldwin
Thomas Baldwin (architect)
Thomas Baldwin was an English surveyor and architect in Bath.He did not originally hail from Bath but was first recorded in the city in 1774, where he was initially a clerk to plumber, glazier, and politician Thomas Warr Attwood. By 1775, he was appointed as the Bath City Architect after...
, a local builder responsible for many other buildings in the city, including the terraces in Argyle Street, the Guildhall
Guildhall, Bath
The Guildhall in Bath, Somerset, England was built between 1775 and 1778 by Thomas Baldwin to designs by Thomas Warr Attwood. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
, The Cross Bath
The Cross Bath, Bath
The Cross Bath in Bath Street, Bath, Somerset, England is a historic pool for bathing. It was rebuilt, in the style of Robert Adam by Thomas Baldwin around 1789. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building.-Geology:...
, Widcombe Crescent
Widcombe Crescent, Bath
Widcombe Crescent in Bath, Somerset, England is a terrace of 14 Georgian houses built in 1808 by Thomas Baldwin, and designated a Grade I listed building....
and Royal Baths Treatment Centre in Bath Street
Bath Street, Bath
Bath Street in Bath, Somerset, England was built by Thomas Baldwin in 1791. Several of the buildings have been esignated as Grade I listed buildings....
. The Grand Pump Room itself includes a North Colonnade of 9 bays, with unfluted Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
columns. The South Colonnade is similar but had an upper floor added in the late 19th century. The colonnades and side wall of the Pump Room have a facade on Stall Street
Stall Street, Bath
Stall Street in Bath, Somerset, England was built by John Palmer between the 1790s and the first decade of the 19th century. The buildings which form an architectural group have listed building status and are now occupied by shops and offices....
. Baldwin rose rapidly, becoming a leader in Bath's architectural history. Great Pulteney Street
Great Pulteney Street
Great Pulteney Street is a grand thoroughfare that connects Bathwick on the east of the River Avon with the City of Bath, England via the Robert Adam designed Pulteney Bridge...
, where Baldwin eventually lived, is another of his works: this wide boulevard
Boulevard
A Boulevard is type of road, usually a wide, multi-lane arterial thoroughfare, divided with a median down the centre, and roadways along each side designed as slow travel and parking lanes and for bicycle and pedestrian usage, often with an above-average quality of landscaping and scenery...
, constructed and over 1000 feet (305 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide, leading from Laura Place
Laura Place, Bath
Laura Place in Bathwick, Bath, Somerset, England was built by Thomas Baldwin and John Eveleigh between 1788 and 1794.Laura Place lies at the end of Pulteney Bridge and consists of four blocks of houses around an irregular quadrangle with a fountain which was not part of the original plan and was...
is lined on both sides by Georgian terraces.
Holburne Museum of Art
The Holburne Museum of Art is in Sydney Pleasure Gardens, Sydney Place, in the Bathwick area of Bath, Somerset, England.-History:...
, which was originally designed as the Sydney Hotel and was built by Charles Harcourt Masters
Charles Harcourt Masters
Charles Harcourt Masters was an English surveyor and architect in Bath.He made a set of maps of Bath turnpike roads in 1786. In 1789 made a scale model of Bath which he displayed at his home, 21 Old Orchard Street, and later in London: the plans were published in 1794...
in 1795–6. It on Sydney Place
Sydney Place, Bath
Sydney Place in the Bathwick area of Bath, Somerset, England was built around 1800. Many of the properties are listed buildings.Numbers 1 to 12 were planned by Thomas Baldwin around 1795. The 3 storey buildings have mansard roofs. Jane Austen lived in Number 4 from 1801 to 1805.The 3 storey houses...
and within the Sydney Pleasure Gardens which stretch from the road to the Kennet and Avon Canal
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is commonly used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section...
. Next to the church of St Mary the Virgin is Bathwick Hill
Bathwick Hill, Bath
Bathwick Hill in Bath, Somerset, England is a street lined with historic houses, many of which are designated as listed buildings. It climbs south east from the A36 towards the University of Bath on Claverton Down, providing views over the city....
which leads up to Claverton Down
Claverton Down
Claverton Down is a suburb on the south-east hilltop edge of Bath, Somerset, England. It is linked to the Bathwick area of the city by Bathwick Hill....
, including Claverton Manor which was built in the 1820s and is now home to the American Museum in Britain and the University of Bath
University of Bath
The University of Bath is a campus university located in Bath, United Kingdom. It received its Royal Charter in 1966....
.
The early 18th century saw Bath acquire its first purpose-built theatre, the Theatre Royal
Theatre Royal, Bath
The Theatre Royal in Bath, England, is over 200 years old. It is one of the more important theatres in the United Kingdom outside London, with capacity for an audience of around 900....
, along with the Grand Pump Room
Grand Pump Room, Bath
The Grand Pump Room in the Abbey Church Yard, Bath, Somerset, England is a historic building. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
attached to the Roman Baths and assembly rooms
Bath Assembly Rooms
The Bath Assembly Rooms, designed by John Wood the Younger in 1769, are a set of elegant assembly rooms located in the heart of the World Heritage City of Bath in England which are now open to the public as a visitor attraction...
. Master of Ceremonies
Master of Ceremonies
A Master of Ceremonies , or compere, is the host of a staged event or similar performance.An MC usually presents performers, speaks to the audience, and generally keeps the event moving....
Beau Nash
Beau Nash
Beau Nash , born Richard Nash, was a celebrated dandy and leader of fashion in 18th-century Britain. He is best remembered as the Master of Ceremonies at the spa town of Bath.- Biography :...
, who presided over the city's social life from 1705 until his death in 1761, drew up a code of behaviour for public entertainments. The population of the city had reached 40,020 by the time of the 1801 census, making it one of the largest cities in Britain, which was expanding up the surrounding hills. William Thomas Beckford
William Thomas Beckford
William Thomas Beckford , usually known as William Beckford, was an English novelist, a profligate and consummately knowledgeable art collector and patron of works of decorative art, a critic, travel writer and sometime politician, reputed to be the richest commoner in England...
bought a house in Lansdown Crescent in 1822, eventually buying a further two houses in the crescent to form his residence. Having acquired all the land between his home and the top of Lansdown Hill, north of the city centre, he created a garden over half a mile in length and built Beckford's Tower
Beckford's Tower
Beckford's Tower, originally known as Lansdown Tower, is an architectural folly built in neo-classical style on Lansdown Hill, just outside Bath, Somerset, England....
at the top. To the west Partis College
Partis College, Bath
Partis College on Newbridge Hill, Bath, Somerset, England, was built as large block of almshouses between 1825 and 1827. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
was built in the Newbridge
Newbridge, Bath
Newbridge is a largely residential electoral ward within Bath, England. Informally, Newbridge refers to the area of Bath that roughly corresponds to the ward boundaries....
area as a large block of almshouse
Almshouse
Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people to live in a particular community...
s between 1825 and 1827. It was founded by Ann and Fletcher Partis for women "who had been left in reduced circumstances", and still provides accommodation, in 30 terraced houses set around three sides of a quadrangle, for women, aged over 50 in membership of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
.
In 1862, George Gilbert Scott
George Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...
redesigned the original chapel, which had been built by Goodrich.
Victorian
Symmetry
Symmetry generally conveys two primary meanings. The first is an imprecise sense of harmonious or aesthetically pleasing proportionality and balance; such that it reflects beauty or perfection...
of Palladianism. By the middle of the 19th century, as a result of new technology, construction was able to develop incorporating steel as a building component.
In 1810 the Kennet and Avon Canal
Kennet and Avon Canal
The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is commonly used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section...
opened linking the River Avon at Bath to Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
. Bath Locks
Bath Locks
Bath Locks are a series of locks situated on the Kennet and Avon Canal, at Bath, England.Bath Bottom Lock, which is numbered as No 7 on the canal is the meeting with the River Avon just south of Pulteney Bridge...
mark the divergence of the River Avon and the canal, 656 yards (600 m) south of Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge that crosses the River Avon, in Bath, England. It was completed in 1773 and is designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building....
. Alongside the bottom lock are a side pound
Canal pound
A canal pound, aka reach, is the stretch of level water impounded between two canal locks. Canal pounds can vary in length from the non-existent, where two or more immediately adjacent locks form a lock staircase, to many miles....
and a pumping station that pumps water up the locks to replace that used each time the lock is opened. The next stage of Bath Deep Lock is numbered 8/9 as two locks were combined when the canal was restored in 1976. The new chamber has a depth of 19 in 5 in (5.92 m), making it Britain's deepest canal lock. Just above the 'deep lock' is an area of water enabling the lock to refill and above this is Wash House Lock, followed by Abbey View Lock, by which there is another pumping station and, in quick succession, Pultney Lock and Bath Top Lock. Above the top lock the canal passes through Sydney Gardens including two short tunnels and under two cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
footbridges dating from 1800. Cleveland tunnel is 173 feet (52.7 m) long and runs under Cleveland House, the former headquarters of the Kennet and Avon Canal Company. A trap-door in the tunnel roof was used to pass paperwork between clerks above and bargees below. Many of the bridges over the canal are also listed buildings. Victoria Bridge
Victoria Bridge, Bath
Victoria Bridge in Bath, England was built in 1836 across the River Avon. The bridge has been recognised as a Grade II* listed building.The bridge is an important example of a cable-stayed bridge which initially carried horses and carts but later carried cyclists and pedestrians until its closure...
which was built in 1836 across the River Avon, was an important early example of a cable-stayed bridge
Cable-stayed bridge
A cable-stayed bridge is a bridge that consists of one or more columns , with cables supporting the bridge deck....
.
As the size of the city and numbers of visitors grew new facilities opened. Cleveland Pools
Cleveland Pools
Cleveland Pools in Hampton Row, Bath, Somerset, England is a semi-circular lido built, by John Pinch the elder, around 1814. It is believed to be the oldest public outdoor swimming pool in England....
in Hampton Row, is a semi-circular lido
Lido
The Lido is an 11 km long sandbar located in Venice, northern Italy, home to about 20,000 residents. The Venice Film Festival takes place at the Lido every September.-Geography:...
built, by John Pinch the elder, around 1814. It is believed to be the oldest surviving public outdoor swimming pools in England. The Corridor
The Corridor
The Corridor is one of the world's earliest retail arcades, designed by architect Henry Goodridge and built in 1825, in Bath, Somerset, England....
is one of the world's earliest retail arcades
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
, designed by architect Henry Goodridge
Henry Goodridge
Henry Edmund Goodridge was an architect whose work started in the 1820s.-Works:Goodridge's neoclassical buildings in Bath include:* Cleveland Bridge;* one of the earliest shopping arcades...
and built in 1825, with a glass roof. The High Street end has a Doric
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
colonnade
Colonnade
In classical architecture, a colonnade denotes a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building....
. Each end has marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
columns. A musicians gallery, with a wrought iron balustrade and gilt lions heads and garlands, is in the centre of the arcade. Cleveland Bridge
Cleveland Bridge
Cleveland Bridge is a grade II* listed building located in the World Heritage Site of Bath, England. It is notable for the unusual lodges that adorn each corner in a style that could be likened to miniature Greek temples.-Location:...
was built in 1826 by William Hazledine
William Hazledine
William Hazledine was a pioneering English Ironmaster whose talent for casting structural ironwork helped to realise the designs of engineers such as Thomas Telford and architects including Henry Goodridge and Charles Bage...
with Henry Goodridge
Henry Goodridge
Henry Edmund Goodridge was an architect whose work started in the 1820s.-Works:Goodridge's neoclassical buildings in Bath include:* Cleveland Bridge;* one of the earliest shopping arcades...
as the architect. St Michael's Church
St Michael's Church, Bath
-Background:It is located between Broad and Walcot Streets, which both merge onto Northgate Street. Located next to the Post Office Building, the south tower fronts Northgate street and dominates Bath's skyline...
was rebuilt between 1835 and 1837 and St. Stephen's Church
St. Stephen's Church, Bath
St Stephen's Church is a church in Bath, Somerset England.Designed to serve the spiritual needs of northeast Bath by James Wilson and built between 1840-1845, from Bath Stone, a limestone sourced from the Limpley Stoke mine which is situated in the Limpley Stoke Valley.St Stephen's Church on...
built in Walcot
Walcot, Bath
Walcot is a suburb of the city of Bath, England. It lies to the north-north-east of the city centre, and is an electoral ward of the city.The parish church, on The Paragon is dedicated to St Swithin and was built in 1779-90 by John Palmer....
. by James Wilson
James Wilson (architect)
James Wilson was a prominent Victorian architect practising in Bath, Somerset and partner in the firm Wilson & Willcox.On 12 January 1843 he married Maria Buckley of Llanelli, and in 1846 they had a son, James Buckley Wilson, who followed his father to also became an architect.-List of Buildings:*St...
, between 1840 and 1845. The Bear Flat
Bear Flat
Bear Flat is an area of Bath, England, to the south of central Bath, below and to the west of Beechen Cliff. The Wellsway, now the A367 road to Shepton Mallet, runs through Bear Flat. Originally this was the main pilgrimage route from Bath, with its abbey, and Wells with its cathedral.'Flat' may...
area south of the city centre was started by the Georgians
Georgian era
The Georgian era is a period of British history which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of, the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain : George I, George II, George III and George IV...
but the main estate of Poets Corner is late Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
and Edwardian.
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
in 1841 removed much of the canal's traffic, and in 1852 the railway company took over its running. Bath Spa railway station
Bath Spa railway station
Bath Spa railway station is the principal railway station in the city of Bath, in South West England.-Architecture:Bath Spa station was built in 1840 for the Great Western Railway by Brunel and is a grade II* listed building...
is the principal railway station in Bath. It was built in 1840 by Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, FRS , was a British civil engineer who built bridges and dockyards including the construction of the first major British railway, the Great Western Railway; a series of steamships, including the first propeller-driven transatlantic steamship; and numerous important bridges...
. It is in an asymmetrical Tudor style with curving gables, and lies on the north bank of the Avon
River Avon, Bristol
The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other River Avons in Britain, this river is often also known as the Lower Avon or Bristol Avon...
, with the line swerving elegantly across from the southern bank to the station and then back again. Green Park railway station
Bath Green Park railway station
Green Park railway station is a former railway station in Bath, Somerset, England. For some of its life, it was known as Bath Queen Square.-Architecture and opening:...
opened in 1870 as the terminus of Midland Railway's
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line
Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line
The Mangotsfield and Bath Branch Line opened in 1869 to connect Bath to the Midland Railway network at Mangotsfield, on the former Bristol and Gloucester Railway....
. For some of its life, it was known as Bath Queen Square. It includes a vaulted glass roof in a single-span wrought iron arch structure. Parts of the distinctive glass roof were damaged during bombing raids in April 1942, and the glazing was not re-instated during railway usage after the war. Following the Beeching Report
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, passenger trains ceased from 1966 and the last goods train ran in 1971. In the 1980s the rail approaches to the station were redeveloped as a major supermarket opened in December 1982, and the station itself is used as a pedestrian passageway to and from the city; there are a number of small shop units in the former station buildings. The Victoria Art Gallery
Victoria Art Gallery
The Victoria Art Gallery is free public art museum in Bath, Somerset, England.The building was designed in 1897 by John McKean Brydon, and has been designated as a Grade II listed building. The exterior of the building includes a statue of Queen Victoria, by A. C. Lucchesi, and friezes of...
, a free public art museum and library was built between the Guildhall and Pulteney Bridge. It was designed by John McKean Brydon. The exterior of the building includes a statue of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
, by A. C. Lucchesi, and friezes of classical figures by G. A. Lawson
G. A. Lawson
George Anderson Lawson was a Victorian era sculptor who was associated with the New Sculpture movement.Lawson was born in Edinburgh. He studied in Glasgow, and settled in London in 1866. His reputation was established through the creation of statues of distinguished citizens...
.
Twentieth century
The Empire HotelEmpire Hotel, Bath
The Empire Hotel in Bath, Somerset, England was built in 1901 and has been designated as a Grade II listed building. It is situated on Orange Grove close to both Bath Abbey and Pulteney Bridge....
was built in 1901 on Orange Grove close to both Bath Abbey
Bath Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Bath, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery in Bath, Somerset, England...
and Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge that crosses the River Avon, in Bath, England. It was completed in 1773 and is designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building....
.
In the 1920s and 1930s Bath's architectural traditions combined with an art deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
style in buildings such as The Forum
The Forum, Bath
The Forum was built as an art deco cinema in Bath, Somerset, England in 1934, and has been designated as a Grade II* listed building.It was built by William Henry Watkins and E Morgan Willmott, assisted by A Stuart Gray, with a steel frame covered by Bath Stone...
which opened as a 2,000-seat cinema in 1934, and has since been converted into a church and concert venue. The Royal United Hospital
Royal United Hospital
The Royal United Hospital is a major acute hospital, located in the Weston suburb of Bath, England, which lies approximately miles west of the Bath city centre. The hospital currently has 565 beds and occupies a site...
opened in the Weston suburb, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the city centre in 1932. During World War II, between the evening of 25 April and the early morning of 27 April 1942, Bath suffered three air raids in reprisal for RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
raids on the German cities of Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
and Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
, part of the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
campaign popularly known as the Baedeker Blitz
Baedeker Blitz
The Baedeker Blitz or Baedeker raids were a series of Vergeltungsangriffe by the German air force on English cities in response to the bombing of the erstwhile Hanseatic League city of Lübeck during the night from 28 to 29 March 1942 during World War II.-Background:Lübeck was bombed on the night...
. Over 400 people were killed, and more than 19,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed. Houses in the Royal Crescent
Royal Crescent
The Royal Crescent is a residential road of 30 houses laid out in a crescent in the city of Bath, England. Designed by the architect John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774, it is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the United Kingdom and is a grade I...
, Circus
The Circus (Bath)
The Circus is an example of Georgian architecture in the city of Bath, Somerset, England, begun in 1754 and completed in 1768. The name comes from the Latin 'circus', which means a ring, oval or circle. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
and Paragon
The Paragon, Bath
The Paragon in the Walcot area of Bath, Somerset, England is a street of Georgian houses which have been designated as listed buildings. It was designed by Thomas Warr Attwood. It now forms part of the A4.Numbers 1 to 21 are 3 storey houses with mansard roofs...
were burnt out along with the Assembly Rooms, while part of the south side of Queen Square
Queen Square (Bath)
Queen Square is a square of Georgian houses in the city of Bath, England.Queen Square was the first speculative development by the architect John Wood, the Elder. Wood lived in a house on the square. Numbers 21-27 make up the north side...
was destroyed. A postwar review of inadequate housing led to the clearance and redevelopment of large areas of the city in a postwar style, often at variance with the Georgian style of the city. In the 1950s the nearby villages of Combe Down
Combe Down
Combe Down is a village suburb of Bath, England in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Somerset. Combe Down sits on a ridge above and about 1.5 miles to the south of Bath city centre. "Combe" or "coombe" is a West Country word meaning a steep-sided...
, Twerton
Twerton
Twerton is a suburb of the city of Bath, Somerset, England, situated to the west of the city, and home to the city's football club, Bath City....
and Weston were incorporated into Bath to enable the development of further housing, much of it council housing such as the Whiteway
Whiteway, Bath
Whiteway is the name given to a housing estate contained within the Southdown and Twerton electoral wards of Bath, Somerset, England. The construction of the estate began shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War. Whiteway falls within the parish of St Barnabas Church at Mount Road,...
estate. In the 1970s and 1980s it was recognised that conservation of historic buildings was inadequate, leading to more care and reuse of buildings and open spaces. In 1987 the city was selected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognising its international cultural significance.
Thermae Bath Spa
Thermae Bath Spa is a combination of the historic spa and a contemporary building in the city of Bath, England, and re-opened in 2006. Bath and North East Somerset council own the buildings, and, as decreed in a Royal Charter of 1590, are the guardians of the spring waters, which are the only...
, SouthGate
SouthGate, Bath
SouthGate is a shopping centre in Bath, Somerset, England. It replaced the original shopping centre which was demolished in 2007. The new centre developed by Multi Corporation UK is more than double the size of the previous space and provides 37,000 sq metres of retail space, 3,500 sq metres of...
, and the Bath Western Riverside project.
21st century
Controversy has continued in recent years with the demolition of the 1930s Churchill House, a neo-Georgian municipal building originally housing the Electricity Board, to make way for the new Bath Bus StationBath Bus Station
Bath bus station serves as part of an integrated transport interchange for the city of Bath, Somerset, England.The Manvers Street bus station opened in 1958 and operated until 2009 when it was replaced by the new bus station in Dorchester Street as part of the Southgate regeneration...
. The was part of the Southgate
SouthGate, Bath
SouthGate is a shopping centre in Bath, Somerset, England. It replaced the original shopping centre which was demolished in 2007. The new centre developed by Multi Corporation UK is more than double the size of the previous space and provides 37,000 sq metres of retail space, 3,500 sq metres of...
redevelopment begun in 2007 in which the central 1960s shopping precinct, bus station, and multi-story carpark were demolished and a new area of mock-Georgian shopping streets is being constructed. As a result of the changes the city's status as a World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
was reviewed by UNESCO in 2009. The decision was made to let Bath keep its status, but UNESCO has asked to be consulted on future phases of the Riverside development, saying that the density and volume of buildings in the second and third phases of the development need to be reconsidered. It also says that Bath must do more to attract world-class architecture to any new developments.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in Bath and North East Somerset
- List of places of interest in Bath, Somerset